Conventional photovoltaic cells are commonly formed of silicon wafers. Decades of research have been dedicated to developing processes for and understanding the properties of such wafers.
Current technology does not allow silicon wafers of less than about 170 microns in thickness to be fabricated economically. Silicon solar cells need not be this thick to be effective or commercially useful. As such, a large portion of the cost of a conventional solar cell is the cost of silicon feedstock that is not required for solar cell operation.
There is a need, therefore, for methods of forming photovoltaic cells from silicon more economically.